Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Meet The Bigger Lights!

Tour season is in full swing and there are several bands Mix and Mark has covered in the past who are constantly on that beautiful road. A band that has been sweating it out playing an insane amount of shows and just want to continue doing it is the Fairfax band The Bigger Lights.Tour wise, the band is currently on the road with Anarbor, The Friday Night Boys and The Ready Set but they have so much in the works for this year with rumored plans coming out for a tour in late spring across the United States. Along with the awesome amount of live shows they are playing, they are also right on the verge of dropping their debut full length album! They will be releasing their first single off of the album "Jessie" on February 9th and this will definitely be their year!

I recently got the chance to sit down with Topher Talley, who is one of the original members of the band and holds place as the lead vocalist in the band. His musical background and influences are clearly what makes him who he is today in a great way and definitely brings something to the band. I got the inside look on how they go about their writing process and large parts of their history of how they came about to be who they are today! Read on for more!

Later this month, you'll be jumping on the road with Anarbor and The Friday Night Boys. Who would be your three dream acts to go on the road with?Honestly our band has huge classic rock influences, so if it were at all possible we would tour with bands like Queen, Aerosmith and BonJovi.

What's your favorite part of the touring lifestyle?It really is all encompassing. There is something extremely exciting about playing in a new city every night, meeting so many amazing people, and experiencing the world with your best friends.

What can fans expect at the tour's shows from you guys?We will be playing new songs off our debut full length. We couldn't be more excited because we love the new songs so much. Other then new songs, anytime someone comes to see TBL, they are going to get a show full of energy and attitude.

Why The Bigger Lights for your name?The bigger lights is actually from the Shakespeare play The Tempest. In the play one of the characters refers to the stars as the bigger lights in reference to the great unknown. We found that very parallel to us following our dreams and pursuing music the way we wanted to!

Who are some of your bigger musical influences?Like I said before, our favorite bands are the great classic rock/arena rock bands. Outside of that spectrum we are all over the place as far as influences are concerned. Some of our individual favorites range from The Black Crowes, Our Lady Peace, Coldplay, Refused, and John Mayer. As we get older our influences change, but our hearts are always buried with the classics!

You've released two EP's now. How did you guys go about the songwriting process? Is it one person or more of a collective effort?The last two EP's were written very briefly. Some of those songs had been written only a week after John Kendall and I started working on them. Everything was so new, and we were not entirely sure what our band was, or what it would become. When we released the first EP 'Third Act Stories', we really just captured the genesis of the band. As soon as that was released, we were already talking to different labels about signing, so it all happened very fast. When the label wanted us to release another EP so quickly, they told us a few of the old songs from the first EP should go on as well, which didn't give ourselves as writers a chance to really grow. After touring for two years and becoming a band of brothers, everything clicked for the writing of our first full length, and we found out that we were exactly where we wanted to be.

How did that compare to your recording of your first full length which is coming out this year?Well the brain child behind our songs is John Kendall. Most ideas start with him. We collaborate together and work out ideas to the end, but along the way any and all input is taken into consideration from any of the other members. One of the great things about our band is that we have no ego, the song is always king and we trust each other in the fact that we all can always come to some sort of agreement on what the best idea is for the song. Having Ryan and Chris (Our two newest members who were not on the previous records) added so much to this record. Now only had John Kendall and I been writing together for almost two years, but the collective of the new band is just so much stronger. I am completely proud of the new record and I'm itching for the world to hear it.

The band is pretty active Internet wise. How do you feel online social media has affected your success?Honestly, it's a love hate relationship. Without it, we couldn't have gotten as far as we have in such a short time. However, there are the negative aspects of it such as illegal downloads, stolen content, and just an over surplus of crappy bands. It's hard for kids to give anyone a chance when everyone is throwing their bands at them. One of the reasons why we work so hard on the actual songs is because of that very reason. Hair cuts, clothes and videos are all part of the experience, but with us, the focus is always on the music. Music first, business second. I really hope the world hears it on this new record.

What can fans look forward to in the next few months?Well our first single "JESSIE" will be released digitally on February 9th on iTunes, and the new record will be out in March. Other than that, we will be touring non stop, sweating at shows, and sleeping on floors for the next year, and loving every minute of it!

---Check out the band tonight in Burlington Vermont if you're from the area but don't fret if you aren't, the band plans to be all over the country this year in support of their new album. Check out their music on myspace and thanks again to Topher and the rest of the band!